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Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds – Umbrella Entertainment (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Australia, 1987
Director: Alex Proyas
Writer: Alex Proyas
Cast: Michael Lake, Rhys Davis, Norman Boyd

Release Date: June 27th, 2023
Approximate running time: 96 Minutes 33 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 English, DTS-HD Stereo English
Subtitles: English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $34.98

"Set against an overwhelming desert landscape, Felix (Michael Lake, Sweetie) and Betty Crabtree (Rhys Davis, Dead End Drive-In) are eccentric siblings living together in an isolated homestead in a post-apocalyptic era. Modern technology is absent, with wheels and gears operating a variety of broken devices to assist their struggle to survive. When they encounter a wandering stranger named Smith (Norman Boyd), their simple lives become tumultuous as the wheelchair-bound Felix dreams of flying and Betty believes their new arrival to be a demonic presence - the characters all yearning for escape but seemingly do not know how." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "a 2K scan of the original 16mm negatives".

Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 41.7 GB

Feature: 25.8 GB

The source looks excellent; flesh tones look healthy, colors look vibrant, image clarity is solid, and black levels are strong. Also, compression is very good, and the image retains an organic look. That said, the grain can look thicker in some scenes than others.

Audio: 4.5/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 English, DTS-HD Stereo English)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English and a DTS-HD stereo mix in English. Both audio tracks are in excellent shape; dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and the score sounds appropriately robust. Though the 5.1 audio track opens things up, I personally prefer the stereo audio track. Included are removable English SDH.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an image gallery (59 images - theatrical & VHS artwork/soundtrack art/behind the scenes/production artwork/stills/print advertisement), a 2018 rerelease trailer (2 minutes 7 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Spirits Song music video (4 minutes 9 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a featurette titled Spirits: Making a Post-Apocalypse Western (23 minutes 30 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actress Rhys Davis (7 minutes 50 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actor Michael Lake (36 minutes 51 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an audio commentary with director Alex Proyas, an audio commentary with composer Peter Miller and editor Craig Wood, a slipcover limited to 2,000 units (OOP), and a 12-page booklet with an introduction written by Alex Proyas, and an essay titled Bright Lights, Dark Visions written by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas.

Summary:

Alex Proyas wrote and directed Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds. He is also known for directing The Crow, Dark City, and I, Robot.

Though Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds have many elements that have become synonymous with the post-apocalyptic film sub-genre, The end result is a truly unique experience that, in many ways, is the antithesis of what one would expect when watching a post-apocalyptic film. Nowhere is this clearer than how Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds go for an intimate setting that is in contrast to the expansive canvases that have become a hallmark of post-apocalyptic films.

The three characters are well-defined, and performance-wise, the cast is all very good in their respective roles. The standout performance is Michael Lake in the role of a wheelchair-bound man named Felix Crabtree, who’s determined to create a flying machine that can help him escape from the isolated world that he shares with his sister. The most memorable performance is by Rhys Davis in the role of Betty Crabtree; she is a religious zealot who becomes more unstable when a stranger disrupts the world she shares with her brother, and this film’s most unstated performance is by Norman Boyd in the role of an enigmatic stranger named Smith.

From a production standpoint, Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds take full advantage of their limited resources. The narrative functions effectively, key moments have adequate time to make an impact, and there are no pacing issues. Visually, Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds do not disappoint; the striking visuals are overflowing with symbolic imagery. Ultimately, Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds is a satisfying mix of the post-Apocalyptic and Western genres.

Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds gets a solid release from Umbrella Entertainment, highly recommended.